How much grass seed per acre? (pounds by grass type, new lawn and overseeding, ¼ to 5 acres)
An acre is 43,560 sq ft, so a seed rate per 1,000 sq ft × 43.56 is the rate per acre: 305 lb of tall fescue (turf-type) for a new lawn (7 lb per 1,000 sq ft, Penn State Extension, Lawn Establishment, Table 1), 109 lb of Kentucky bluegrass, 65.3 lb of bermudagrass; for overseeding 174 lb, 54.5 lb and 32.7 lb. The tables below give every grass type, ¼ to 5 acres of tall fescue with bags, cost, overseeding and the sod for the same ground, the fertilizer per acre, and the UK types per acre and per hectare. Everything is the grass seed calculator's own arithmetic on the extension rates.
Open the grass seed calculator
How much grass seed per acre, by grass type?
The extension pages write seed rates per 1,000 sq ft; an acre is 43,560 sq ft, so the rate × 43.56 is the seed per acre. By weight bermudagrass and zoysiagrass need the least, 65.3 lb; tall fescue the most, 305 lb. Bags are the 10 lb bag the grass seed calculator starts with (Twin City Seed Company, Blue Resilience tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass mixture), rounded up. Read on 2026-09-20.
| Grass type | New-lawn rate | New lawn, per acre | Overseeding, per acre | Bags (new lawn) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kentucky bluegrass | 2.5 lb per 1,000 sq ft | 109 lb | 54.5 lb | 11 × 10 lb | Penn State Extension, Lawn Establishment, Table 1 seeding rates |
| Tall fescue (turf-type) | 7 lb per 1,000 sq ft | 305 lb | 174 lb | 31 × 10 lb | Penn State Extension, Lawn Establishment, Table 1 |
| Perennial ryegrass | 4.5 lb per 1,000 sq ft | 196 lb | 218 lb | 20 × 10 lb | Penn State Extension, Lawn Establishment, Table 1 |
| Fine fescue | 4.5 lb per 1,000 sq ft | 196 lb | 120 lb | 20 × 10 lb | Penn State Extension, Lawn Establishment, Table 1 |
| Bermudagrass | 1.5 lb per 1,000 sq ft | 65.3 lb | 32.7 lb | 7 × 10 lb | NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 9 Lawns, seeding rate |
| Zoysiagrass | 1.5 lb per 1,000 sq ft | 65.3 lb | 32.7 lb | 7 × 10 lb | NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 9 Lawns, seeding rate |
| Sun and shade mix (bluegrass, fine fescue, ryegrass) | 3.5 lb per 1,000 sq ft | 152 lb | 76.2 lb | 16 × 10 lb | Penn State Extension, Lawn Establishment, Table 1 mixtures |
How much seed and sod for ¼ to 5 acres?
Tall fescue (turf-type) at 7 lb per 1,000 sq ft for a new lawn and 4 lb per 1,000 sq ft for overseeding, bags of 10 lb at $53.00. The last two columns sod the same ground: CT Sod, How many square feet of sod comes on a pallet rolls of 10 sq ft with the 10% extra for cuts, 50 rolls to a pallet. An acre of sod weighs 71,880-143,760 lb (CT Sod, How many square feet of sod comes on a pallet).
| Area | Square feet | Seed, new lawn | Bags | Cost (seed) | Seed, overseeding | Sod rolls | Pallets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ¼ acre | 10,890 sq ft | 76.2 lb | 8 | $424 | 43.6 lb | 1,198 | 24 |
| ½ acre | 21,780 sq ft | 152 lb | 16 | $848 | 87.1 lb | 2,396 | 48 |
| 1 acre | 43,560 sq ft | 305 lb | 31 | $1,643 | 174 lb | 4,792 | 96 |
| 2 acres | 87,120 sq ft | 610 lb | 61 | $3,233 | 348 lb | 9,584 | 192 |
| 3 acres | 130,680 sq ft | 915 lb | 92 | $4,876 | 523 lb | 14,375 | 288 |
| 5 acres | 217,800 sq ft | 1,525 lb | 153 | $8,109 | 871 lb | 23,958 | 480 |
The rates and the pounds per 1,000 sq ft for every type, in both units, are in How much grass seed per square foot?; the warm-season figures per 100 sq ft in How much bermuda grass seed per square foot?.
How much fertilizer per acre?
Same multiplier: the product per 1,000 sq ft at 1 lb per 1,000 sq ft (Purdue Extension AY-27, Maintenance Calendar for Indiana Lawns, September) × 43.56. Bags are 12.5 lb, the year is the 4 feeds of the cool-season calendar, and How much fertilizer per 1,000 sq ft? has the rates month by month.
| N-P-K | Per feed | Bags | Per year | Bags per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32-0-4 | 136 lb | 11 | 545 lb | 44 |
| 24-0-6 | 182 lb | 15 | 726 lb | 59 |
| 16-8-8 | 272 lb | 22 | 1,089 lb | 88 |
| 10-10-10 | 436 lb | 35 | 1,742 lb | 140 |
Grass seed per acre and per hectare (UK)
UK labels write the rate in g per m²; an acre is 4,047 m² and a hectare 10,000 m², so the rate in g per m² × 4.05 is the kilograms per acre and × 10 the kilograms per hectare. The 1 kg box is sized for a garden (Rolawn Medallion Lawn Seed); for this much ground buy seed by the sack (the hard-wearing mix is listed as 10 kg for 200 m²) and type the sack size into the calculator.
| Lawn type | New-lawn rate | Per acre, new | Per acre, overseeding | Per hectare, new |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General-purpose lawn (ryegrass and fescue) | 35 g per m² | 142 kg | 93.1 kg | 350 kg |
| Shade lawn | 35 g per m² | 142 kg | 101 kg | 350 kg |
| Hard-wearing lawn (ryegrass) | 50 g per m² | 202 kg | 202 kg | 500 kg |
Every figure above is the seed, sod and fertilizer calculators’ own arithmetic on the starting values, whose sources and dates are listed on the calculator pages; the label on the bag wins.
Frequently asked questions
- How many pounds of grass seed per acre?
- kentucky bluegrass 109 lb, tall fescue (turf-type) 305 lb, perennial ryegrass 196 lb, fine fescue 196 lb, bermudagrass 65.3 lb, zoysiagrass 65.3 lb, sun and shade mix (bluegrass, fine fescue, ryegrass) 152 lb for a new lawn, from the extension rates per 1,000 sq ft × 43.56. These are lawn (turfgrass) rates; pasture and hay mixes are seeded at their own rates, which the calculator does not carry.
- How much grass seed per acre for overseeding?
- kentucky bluegrass 54.5 lb, tall fescue (turf-type) 174 lb, perennial ryegrass 218 lb, fine fescue 120 lb, bermudagrass 32.7 lb, zoysiagrass 32.7 lb, sun and shade mix (bluegrass, fine fescue, ryegrass) 76.2 lb. The University of Maryland gives the tall fescue, bluegrass and fine fescue overseeding rates, Penn State the ryegrass renovation rate, and the warm-season and mix figures apply the half rule from Ohio State Extension; the rates are listed with their sources on the seed calculator.
- How much tall fescue seed per acre?
- 305 lb for a new lawn (7 lb per 1,000 sq ft), 174 lb for overseeding (4 lb per 1,000 sq ft): 31 bags of 10 lb, $1,643 at $53.00 a bag (Twin City Seed Company, Blue Resilience tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass mixture); a farm-store sack is priced per pound, so divide its price by its pounds and multiply by the bag weight for the calculator.
- How much bermuda grass seed per acre?
- 65.3 lb for a new lawn at the NC State rate (1.5 lb per 1,000 sq ft, NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, chapter 9 Lawns, seeding rate), 32.7 lb for overseeding; zoysia is seeded at the same rate. The bermuda guide has the figures per 1,000 sq ft and per 100 sq ft.
- How many square feet are in an acre, and how many acres is my lawn?
- 43,560 sq ft; a 1,000 sq ft lawn is 0.023 acre and a ¼-acre lot is 10,890 sq ft, but the house, drive and beds sit on it, so measure the grass rather than the lot: the calculator takes the lawn as rectangles, circles and triangles minus obstacles, and the seed, sod and fertilizer tools share that area.
- How much fertilizer per acre for a lawn?
- At the 1 lb per 1,000 sq ft that Purdue Extension AY-27, Maintenance Calendar for Indiana Lawns, September gives, 32-0-4 is 136 lb per acre per feed (11 bags of 12.5 lb) and 545 lb for the year's 4 feeds on the cool-season calendar. The fertilizer guide has every analysis per 1,000 sq ft and the rates for each month.
More guides
- How much grass seed per square foot? (rates by grass type)
Seed rates by grass type for a new lawn and overseeding, in lb per 1,000 sq ft and kg per 100 m²; seed, sod and fertilizer by lawn size.
- How much bermuda grass seed per square foot? (per 1,000 sq ft, new lawn and overseeding, zoysia too)
Bermudagrass seed at the NC State rate of 1-2 lb per 1,000 sq ft: ounces per 100 sq ft, pounds for 1,000 to 10,000 sq ft, new lawn and overseeding.
- How much fertilizer per 1,000 sq ft? (pounds of 32-0-4, 24-0-6, 16-8-8 and 10-10-10 at 1 lb of nitrogen)
Pounds of fertilizer per 1,000 sq ft at 1 lb of nitrogen, by N-P-K from 32-0-4 to 10-10-10; bags and cost for a year on 1,000 to 10,000 sq ft; UK per m².
- How much sod do I need for 500 square feet? (rolls, pallets and cost, 100 to 2,000 sq ft)
Sod for lawns of 100 to 2,000 sq ft: rolls and pallets with the extra for cuts, the cost from the price per roll and the weight to expect; UK turf rolls in m² too.
Last updated 2026-09-22. Rates from university extension guides and product labels, each with its source and date: the label on the bag wins.